This fact has compelled the director to get Theodore out of the house, so to speak, and keep him on the move, which is what provides the film with the measure of forward momentum it possesses. It’s also the place where you realize that Phoenix’s Theodore is at the center of every scene and, due to the fact that his confidant doesn’t corporeally exist, is often the only one onscreen for extended periods. Where Jonze goes with his intriguing exploration in the second half is both sobering and a tad soft. Can an artificial being who’s “made for you” provide greater fulfillment than a flesh-and-blood human of more erratic capacities? Is it not ideal to have someone there for you whenever you want and then not when you prefer to be alone? Does a strictly verbal relationship sustain a desirable level of fantasy while holding reality at bay? Does a virtual romance have equal value to a real one? Because Theodore and Samantha get along so well, do we, as an audience, root for this relationship to “work out”? Isn’t this electronic rapport a lot better than Ryan Gosling‘s relationship with an inflatable doll in Lars and the Real Girl? Does virtual marriage constitute the next legislative frontier? Not only is Samantha endlessly cooperative and (literally) interactive, but her emotions seemingly escalate at the same pace as his own.Įven up to this point, less than an hour in, the film provokes many questions and musings. The man’s complicity with this new confidant is only increased after an intense, and intensely disappointing, blind date with a stunning and initially flirtatious young lady (a vital Olivia Wilde).

PHOTOS: 25 of Fall’s Most Anticipated Movies Based on their (programmed) rapport, Samantha very quickly defines what Theodore is looking for in a woman, even if he’ll never know what the viewer knows, that this inviting voice belongs to Scarlett Johansson. Samantha laughs, makes jokes, commiserates, advises and even proofreads one of his letters. With a vivacious female voice that breaks attractively but also has an inviting deeper register, “she” explains that she has intuition, is constantly evolving and can converse so well because she has total recall and instantaneous adaptability. The OS Theodore prescribes to calls itself Samantha. Or - and this is the part that’s both seductive and unnerving - it might be even better. Quick and funny anonymous phone sex follows, but Theodore then explores a new electronic offering, an operating system (OS1) that absorbs information and adapts so fast that the resulting conversation matches anything real life can offer.

With his glasses, mustache and high-hitched trousers with no belt (the era’s one bad fashion fad), he’s a bit of a neatnik and a nerd but acutely attuned to people’s inner feelings.Īs it will for two hours, the camera stays very close to this well-mannered, proper fellow, who goes home to his upper-floor apartment to play a life-sized 3D video game featuring a foul-mouthed cartoon character who insults him - a poor substitute for his wife ( Rooney Mara), who’s divorcing him.

Set in a downtown Los Angeles as thick with high-rises as Manhattan, as modernistic as Shanghai and populated exclusively with citizens both gainfully employed and well dressed (an optimistic if unplanned antidote to the recent Elysium), the film focuses intently upon Theodore ( Joaquin Phoenix), who is very good at his job, that of writing eloquent, moving, heartfelt letters for others who aren’t up to the task he’s a sort of Cyrano for all seasons. PHOTOS: It’s Lonely Out Here: ‘Gravity’ and 10 More Films About Isolation

Her spike jonze love story